I used to be Britain's longest-running wrestling blogger. Then I got a proper job.

Friday, 12 June 2009

K-1 World GP in Seoul 2007 - CPC Movies DVD Review

Over the past few years Eurosport has served it’s K-1 fans well, giving us a steady stream of kickboxing action from around the world. But now, with the shows only being shown on their high definition channel or via their internet pay TV service, many fans, including yours truly, are now missing out.

But this is why Beatdown’s DVD releases of archive shows are able to fill the gap. K-1 World GP 2007 in Seoul sees sixteen of the top fighters in the world looking to make their way to the final elimination tournament in Tokyo. And boy, are there some great fighters in the line-up. There’s the battle of the legends between Ray “Sugarfoot” Sefo and “The Dutch Lumberjack” Peter Aerts, the powerful Frenchman Jerome Le Banner, who recently made a return to professional boxing after a ten year absence, taking on Korean star Yong Soo Park, as well as the likes of Remy Bonjasky, Semmy Schilt, Badr Hari and more, with the proverbial David v Goliath battle in the main event, with America’s Mighty Mo facing the mega popular Korean giant, Hong-Man Choi.

There really aren’t any bad fights on this DVD. There’s some horrendous refereeing decisions, and one fight that ends rather sadly, but in all it’s a great example of K-1 kickboxing at it’s finest. And it’s not only the fighting that’s great. Michael Schiavello’s style of commentary is, after years of having to put up with Will Vanders, is like a breath of fresh air. Sure, like Vanders, Schiavello comes out with the usual sayings; “he’s wearing more leather than the Village People”, but in the end he’s nowhere near as bad as his Eurosport counterpart.

So if you’re suffering from withdrawl symptoms, then buying K-1 shows on DVD will help you get your regular fix, and where better to start than this one?